These very special veterans we honor today are all the women who ever served in defense of our nation. From the American Revolution to the present, the women in our military have a proud heritage -- one that predates our democracy. Let's take a walk through history -- in this case, "herstory."

Molly Pitcher, whose real name was Mary Hayes McCauly, earned her nickname by carrying water and grog to her husband and other American artillerymen of the Revolution. She earned her fame, however, at New Jersey's Battle of Monmouth on June 28, 1778. When her husband collapsed in battle, she immediately took his place, firing the cannon until the battle was over. And there were others during the American Revolution:

There was Margaret Corbin, like Molly Pitcher, followed and helped her husband from camp to camp. And she, like Molly, took her husband's place when he fell in battle -- at Fort Washington, New York. There was Mad Ann Bailey, an expert shot and a skilled horsewoman, served as a scout, spy, and messenger. There was Sarah Fulton delivered dispatches through enemy lines. There was Deborah Sampson, disguised as a man, enlisted and served for three years in the Revolutionary army. She was injured twice, the second time by a musket ball deep in her thigh. She treated her own wounds to avoid detection. But finally, when she fell unconscious and was near death, a doctor treating her for "malignant fever" discovered she was a woman. Quietly discharged from the army, she later was awarded a disability bonus and a pension of four dollars a month. These women, when needed, were there for their nation. And we remember. In the years following the Revolution, women helped settle the frontier. When part of a military family, they traveled and lived at various posts, camps and stations throughout our nation. They suffered the same privations and endured the same hardships as their soldier husbands. And they too served.

When our united nation divided in 1861, so too did the women of our nation. They served in the forces of the Confederacy and the forces of the Union, mostly in traditional roles such as cook and nurse. Others served as scouts and spies. As in the Revolution, some women enlisted using an alias. One such soldier was Sarah Edmonds. She initially served as a male nurse, but later became a spy in the secret service of the Union. Edmonds was a master of disguise. Able to pass as a man or woman -- black or white -- she infiltrated Confederate lines 11 times in 1862 and 1863.

Dr. Mary Walker was the first woman doctor in the U.S. Army and the only woman ever to be awarded the Medal of Honor. At first word of the Civil War, she requested a commission. It was denied her. While appealing her case through bureaucratic channels, she served as a volunteer in a hospital established at the U.S. Patent Office. Later she followed the battles, working in the surgeon's tent at Manassas and Fredericksburg, Virginia -- still a volunteer, still unpaid for her services. She continued her volunteer service until 1863, when she was ordered to serve with the 52nd Ohio Infantry Regiment.

She was to replace a surgeon -- a man, of course -- killed in the battle of Chickamauga. Although her medical superiors questioned her credentials and competency, she stayed with the unit, riding daily by horseback through the picket lines to attend to the sick -- soldier and civilian alike -- around war-ravaged Chattanooga. It was performing this service, crossing the picket lines, that led to her capture by the Confederates in April of 1864. She remained a prisoner of war for four months, then gained her freedom in a prisoner exchange. Researcher Jean Gillette says this about her: "It was always a source of pride to (Dr. Walker) that she was exchanged ... 'man for man.' " After being released, she received the grand sum of $436.36 for her work and time in captivity. All her service before 1863 she had given as an unpaid civilian volunteer! And we remember.

Gradually, the role of women began to change. In 1901, the Army Nurse Corps was established -- then, in 1908, the Navy Nurse Corps. By the end of World War One, the number of women who had served in these two corps, and also in the Navy, the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard, was 34,000.

America first recruited its women for military service during World War One. The first to enlist were Navy yeomen, in March 1917. The first women Marine reservists enlisted in August 1918; there were 305 of them. There were also a few Coast Guard yeomen, including the Baker twins, Genevieve and Lucille, who enlisted in 1918. These women served mostly as clerks, translators and radio electricians.

In 1917, General John Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Forces, requested bilingual enlisted women to serve on the front lines as telephone operators. But the law at that time allowed women to join the Army only as nurses. The Army found a way to bypass the law: 223 civilian women volunteered to serve in England and France under contract with the Army's Signal Corps, beginning in March 1918. These civilian volunteers were known as "hello girls."

Of the others who volunteered for military service, about 10,000 were assigned "over there" -- overseas, in Europe. They had no rank, no benefits, and no entitlements. Still, they had volunteered. They had served. Then, at war's end, when they were no longer needed, they returned quietly to civilian life. Forgotten? No. Because today, we remember.

As the specter of another world war loomed on the horizon, the role of women in the military continued to change. The War Department considered women for "quasi-military operations." In May 1942, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps was established -- soon to become the Women's Army Corps, whose members were called Wacs. Two months later the Navy founded the WAVES -- Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service. In November of that same year -- 1942 -- the Coast Guard created the SPARs, an acronym deriving from the Coast Guard motto: Semper Paratus -- Always Ready. The Marine Corps established the Marine Corps Women's Reserve, but gave its members no nickname or abbreviation; women in the Marine Corps were simply called Women Marines. The last organization established for women fell under the U.S. Civil Service. It was the Women's Airforce Service Pilots, and its members were known as Wasps.

The War Department had hoped to recruit 500,000 women. By the end of the war, 350,000 women had served in the military. Only about 280,000 of them, however, remained in service. Of the 12 million U.S. service members at the end of June 1945, women comprised 2.3 percent.

Once in the military, women had other obstacles to overcome: They couldn't give orders to men, their ranks were different, and their pay was less. Of the military services, only the Army allowed them to serve overseas, and laws restricted the ranks of the directors and officers. Still, women volunteered. Still, they served.

Ann Carl, a WASP pilot during World War Two, ferried gunnery-training targets at Camp Davis, North Carolina, and later tested fighters and bombers at Wright Field, Ohio. From a recent interview with USA Today, here are her words:

"We felt we were lucky to be doing what we were doing. We would have done the whole thing free of charge. We would have paid to do it!" she said. Now, that's patriotism. She did it for her country; they all did it for their country. Says historian Linda Grant De Pauw: "They were not opening doors to women. They were in there to defeat the Nazis or the Japanese."

And the women who served did so in a wide variety of specialties: transportation, maintenance, intelligence, communications, aviation, administration, and even training pilots and gunners. All were trained as non-combatants, even though Wacs overseas often served in hazardous zones.

Did you know that about 1,500 Wacs assigned to London were exposed to nightly attacks by buzz bombs? That 17 of those Wacs received the Purple Heart for injuries received?

Did you know that a platoon of WAC communications specialists accompanied the advance headquarters party of General Mark Clark's V Corps as it entered Italy? That for three to six months these Wacs were within range and sound of enemy artillery?

Did you know that 16 nurses were killed in action during World War Two? That 1,600 were decorated for meritorious service and bravery under fire? That 66 Army nurses, captured during the Japanese invasion of the Philippines in 1942, cared for sick inmates in the Santo Tomas civilian internment camp until U.S. forces freed them in February 1945?

And did you know that nurses followed Allied forces ashore five days after the first Allied landing at Anzio? That six nurses later were killed in bombing attacks by the Germans?

Did you know of this tradition, this proud heritage of American women in the military? I didn't. But now, I do know. And I will remember.

At war's end, nearly all women in military service returned to civilian life. Nearly all, but not all! As in no previous post-war period, a small nucleus of women was allowed to remain on active duty. By 1947, these women numbered only 14,500 in the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. They were few in number, but still they served in the U.S. armed forces. And still they wore the uniform of American military service.

Now the year was 1948, and military women cleared another hurdle: Congress provided for regular and reserve status of women in the Army, the Navy, the Marine Corps and the newly formed Air Force. Their numbers were limited to 2 percent of the total force, and women were prohibited from rising above the rank of lieutenant colonel or commander. The law provided, however, that each service director could rise to the rank of colonel or, in the case of the Navy, to the equivalent rank of captain.

In 1950, American women in military service were trained and ready when duty called them to Korea. In Pusan and Seoul, most women served as nurses, but some served as stenographers, aides and interpreters. Within four days after the first U.S. troops landed, Army nurses arrived at Pusan to set up a hospital and care for the casualties. In all, about 540 women served in Korea. And we remember.

"Herstory" continues during the Vietnam era. In March 1962, the first WAC officer served in Vietnam. In all, nearly 11,000 women served there, mostly as Army, Navy and Air Force nurses. According to researcher June A. Willenz, more than three quarters of these women were exposed to combat. They didn't just hear about war. They saw it. They felt it. They lived it. And eight of them died in it. The names of those eight now are etched on "The Wall" of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Today is a special day for women who served America in Vietnam. For the first time, our nation today dedicates a memorial to their service. Diane Carlson Evans, founder of the Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, wants "America to remember that in the wrenching times of the Vietnam War, her daughters also answered her call." Evans hopes that, like "The Wall," this memorial will be a place of healing for those who served, and a chance for others to say thank you.

At the groundbreaking ceremony, General Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said: "I realize for the first time that for male soldiers, that war came in intermittent flashes of terror.... The nurses saw the bleakest, most terrifying face of war. The mangled men, the endless sobs of wounded kids ... not just now and then, but day after day, night after hellish night."

And like so many others who have witnessed the horrors of war, they too need to heal. Says former Army nurse Edie McCoy Meeks, "I don't have to recover from killing somebody. I have to recover because I couldn't save anyone." For her, as she told USA Today, the memorial will help. It "stands for the fact that we are different heroes," she said, "but just as important as other heroes."

During the fundraising process, members of the memorial committee began to find that the American public did hold their deeds as acts of heroism. One letter from a small child contained two one-dollar bills. It said, "This is all I have, but I want you to have it, because if it weren't for you, my daddy wouldn't be here."

And so, they served. Despite the harsh realities, the remote locations, the long hours, and the hardships endured, they served. Knowing how hard it would be, would they do it again? Yes, absolutely! Many in fact did -- most recently when their reserve units were called to active duty during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. And with them, we remember.

As these women served during the Vietnam era, their roles continued to evolve. In 1967, Congress removed promotion restrictions, allowing women to become general officers. The 2-percent restriction on the number of Regular Army Wacs was also removed. Then in June 1973, the entire military was significantly changed. No longer conscripted, the military became an all-volunteer force. While this was a new concept for men, it wasn't for women who served -- they all had been volunteers from the outset.

With this change, the number of women in service began to grow. In 1974, Army women were assigned into branches previously occupied by men, except for Infantry, Armor and Field Artillery. And they were now promoted equally with their men counterparts.

And the role continued to change. In 1975, by public law, women were admitted to the service academies. The following year, in 1976 -- 200 years after Molly Pitcher, Sarah Fulton and Margaret Corbin had served in the military -- 119 women were the first to enter the U.S. Military Academy at West Point; 81 entered the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis; and 157 entered the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

Before they graduated in 1980, a separate corps for them was no longer needed. In the Army, women had been assimilated effectively in training assignments, logistics and administrative management.

Members of the Women's Army Corps, both officers and enlisted, had grown in number -- from about 16,000, in 1972, to 56,841, by September 30, 1978. Then, on October 20, 1978, the Women's Army Corps was disestablished. The other services followed similar paths.

Military women now trained and served at locations throughout the world -- serving not as Wacs, Waves and Wafs, but as soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen. Side by side, as members of a well-trained team, they served with their men counterparts. Those who had doubted their capabilities were pleasantly surprised.

This evolution went largely unnoticed until October 1983, during Operation Urgent Fury. Women MPs from Fort Bragg deployed with their units to Grenada. Upon reaching their destination, however, they were recalled to the United States; then, three days later, they returned. Their commander said the initial decision to withdraw them wasn't the right one. "If there's a battle," he said, "the women will stay and complete their mission."

Six years later, in 1989, the question of whether women should serve with their units wasn't even asked.

Before the invasion of Panama, 620 women were already stationed there, and 170 more were sent. They continued the proud tradition of those who'd gone before them. And we remember.

Who then could have imagined that a year later this all-volunteer force, comprised of men and women, would face its first large-scale challenge? This force was, for the most part, untested. Could they do the job? Would their equipment work? Could they withstand the harsh environment a continent away? News magazines, cover after cover, examined the all-volunteer force and placed special scrutiny on the women, then nearly 11 percent of the entire force on active duty.

Not only did women withstand the microscopic scrutiny; they served professionally and withstood the blistering heat of summer and the cold, windy, dust-filled desert winters. They were there to deter war by being ready to wage it. And when Saddam Hussein failed to comply with the United Nations deadline, they, with their units -- their comrades -- crossed the line in the sand.

About 3,800 Air Force women, in units of both the active and reserve components, served in the desert. When the air campaign began, they were there -- serving in military airlift, airlift terminal and cargo management, aerial refueling, communications, intelligence, fire fighting, aeromedical evacuation and a wide variety of support specialties. Women Air Force pilots flew and crewed strategic transports, tactical transports, tankers, reconnaissance and aeromedical airlift aircraft.

When the ground war began, 26,000 Army women and 1,000 women Marines were there with their units. They served in a wide variety of specialties, including military police, intelligence, communications and civil affairs. They flew helicopters, drove trucks and operated the Patriot missiles. One thousand Navy women were part of the campaign, as well. They served on hospital ships, supply ships, repair ships, oilers and ammunition ships.

They flew helicopters and reconnaissance aircraft and served in Navy construction battalions. In all, nearly 35,000 women served. Fifteen of them died; four of them, all enlisted soldiers, were killed in action. Two women, an Army truck driver and an Army flight surgeon, were taken prisoner.

But this you know. You saw them on television, in magazines and newspapers. You welcomed them home, and you mourned with those families whose sons and daughters, husbands and wives, fathers and mothers made the supreme sacrifice for our country. To all of them, you were then a grateful nation. You recognized their professional commitment and patriotism. By your actions you thanked them. You remembered.

Today the legacy of these soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen lives on. Their proud tradition doesn't end here. It lives on.

This spring a historic change in assignment policy occurred when combat aviation specialties and assignments on Navy combat ships were opened to women. Secretary of Defense Les Aspin explained the change. He said: "We know from experience that women can fly our high-performance fighter aircraft. We know from experience that they can perform well in assignments at sea. And we know from Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield that women can stand up to the most demanding environments."

And later, when honored by the Women in Military Service for America Memorial Foundation for his contributions to the advancement of women in the services, he said: "Opening opportunities for women in uniform isn't just the right thing to do. It's also the smart thing to do. It's smart because the U.S. military is making dramatic changes in the post-Cold War era, changes that need to be made. As we do, we can't waste any talent. ... We need to tap the talents of everybody we have. ... And I salute all the women who have played -- and will play -- such a key role in making America's military forces the world's finest."

And what do those serving think of these changes? Says one Army aviator, "I knew it would happen -- not by revolution, but by evolution." Says another: "I am pleased with these changes, and I'm proud of those who served so well before I joined. But more than anything, I want to be regarded not as a woman soldier, but as a soldier."

A soldier first, because the patriotic, selfless service -- of those who served before and those who now serve -- knows no gender. When we think of those soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, we won't visualize only young men. We'll remember the young women who also dedicate their time, talents and -- yes, their very lives -- to protecting our nation. Yes. We will remember.

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